Lorene Craddock Hayden

LORENE ETOILE HAYDEN, 96, a resident of Brookdale Eden, passed away peacefully, surrounded by family and friends, on Mother’s Day, May 8, 2016.  A service celebrating her life will be held at Fair Funeral Home Chapel on Sunday, May 15, at 1pm, with visitation starting one hour prior to the service.  Burial will follow at Woodlawn Cemetery.  Mrs. Hayden was born December 17, 1919, in North Carolina, eldest child of the late Ira Craddock, Sr. and Thelma (Bohannon) Craddock.  Her younger brother, Ira Craddock, Jr., preceded her in death.  Lorene grew up in Leaksville, where she was a stellar student and member of the Drama Club at Leaksville High School.  Lorene married Laymon Carlyle Hayden in Leaksville in 1940, and they remained married for 71 years until his death in 2012.  She was often quoted as saying 71 years with her kind and devoted husband was nowhere near enough. During her life, she lived in various places, most notably Leaksville (Eden), Mayodan, and Newport News, Virginia.  After World War II, Lorene worked as a cashier for the telephone company in Leaksville, where she won First Prize, a $50 Savings Bond, in a national “Courtesy Contest” for an article she wrote concerning the importance of courtesy in her job.  During the time she lived in Newport News, she greatly enjoyed the mental challenges of playing in a bridge club, and she was a member of the local Women’s Club.  She and Mr. Hayden moved back to the Eden area following his retirement from the Newport News Shipyard in the 1970s.  They were a fixture around Eden, always seen together, and they were known and loved by many.  Lorene was unique, intelligent, clever, funny, kind, grateful, and beautiful; her middle name, meaning “star” in French, aptly described her.  With eyes the color of her beloved Carolina basketball team, she charmed people wherever she went.  Strong to the end, Lorene lived her life with a deep love for God, her family and friends, nature, and the many dogs she owned over the years.  She enjoyed cheering for her Atlanta Braves, working crossword puzzles, and, near the end of her life, painting pictures.  Even in her later years, Lorene prided herself on maintaining her beauty and her intellect, keeping her hair and nails immaculate and solving difficult word puzzles on her Kindle with ease.  She was a unique, one-of-a-kind person; as one of the staffers at Brookdale Eden said, she always “kept things interesting.” She will be sorely missed by all who knew and loved her.  She is survived by her sister, Peg Cox, of Mint Hill, NC; a son, Gary, of Lanexa, Virginia, granddaughter, Kristen Hayden, her husband, Gavin Torrisi, and their children, Sage and Ian, all of Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania; grandson, Brendan Hayden, of Ann Arbor, Michigan, and; numerous nieces and nephews.  In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Aging, Disability and Transit Services (Meals on Wheels Program), P.O. Box 1915, Reidsville, NC 27323. Online condolences may be offered to the family at www.fairfuneralhome.com.